Cafes get more sidewalk under North Beach plan
Curbside parking spaces in North Beach would be replaced with cafe seating in the latest initiative to rethink how streets are used in San Francisco – making them less focused on cars and more welcoming for pedestrians.
A new plan calls for transforming part of Columbus Avenue, the heart of North Beach’s vibrant commercial corridor, where street parking already is scarce and alfresco dining is in demand.
If deemed a success, the parking space conversion program would be expanded to other neighborhoods.
The city already is testing road closures in the Castro and the Mission to create what amounts to asphalt miniparks in spaces once dominated by cars and trucks.
The project dovetails with San Francisco’s transit-first policy, which emphasizes planning and funding decisions that discourage the use of private automobiles.
“It’s the city formally saying that they want to convert space now used just by cars for other activities,” said Rachel Hiatt, senior transportation planner for the San Francisco County Transportation Authority.
The proposal got a public airing at City Hall Tuesday and will be considered by the authority’s governing board – made up of San Francisco’s 11 supervisors – in two weeks. If given the green light, as expected, small pilot projects focused on converting individual parking spots could begin in the spring, Hiatt said.
